Truth. What is That? || Claudia Kalmikov || Mama Bear Apologetics (March 29, 2018)

Hey friends! It’s Claudia Kalmikovof Mama Bear Apologetics, a partner of Ratio Christi International. Mama Bear Apologetics exists for the sole purpose of equipping moms to answer the tough questions of the faith. These questions start in the home, and moms are usually the first ones to hear them. So ladies, let’s band together, and educate ourselves. You can follow Mama Bear Apologetics on the web, Facebook, twitter, youtube, and iTunes. Today’s topic is…Truth!”

Today we live in a world where some say we can’t know truth. Some say there is no truth or that science is the only way we can know anything about truth. Then why should we believe any of these claims if there is no truth? They don’t live up to their own standard. But we don’t really live like there is no truth do we? Think about it, we expect truth from every area of our lives, don’t we? We expect truth from our doctors, spouses, bankers, loved ones and anyone we depend on to make important decisions in our lives. We live in a world where objective truth is known and expected by everyone.

Moral Relativism says there is no objective truth. It says that there is no such thing as right or wrong, good or bad, that we shouldn’t judge, and that your truth is true for you and my truth is true for me. Relativism is the worldview that all worldviews are true. But here’s what I want you all to know: Every person should know that relativism is false and objective truth exists, because of the consequences of relativistic thinking.

Before I explain the consequences of relativistic thinking, I need to talk about truth first. Truth is when your beliefs match up to reality. What we must realize is that there are different kinds of truth and that we should not confuse them. For example: If I say chocolate ice cream is the best ice cream, that is a subjective truth because it is about me—the subject. Not the ice cream. Subjective claims are personal, private, or just your opinion. They are about what you think about something. Subjective claims can be true for some and false for others. So it can be true for me that chocolate ice cream is the best ice cream. But it might not be true for someone else. That’s ok because we are talking about a subjective claim for which there is no consequence. However, if I say that ice cream controls diabetes, can that claim be true for some and false for others? No! This is a different kind of claim isn’t it? This kind of claim has consequences. This is an objective claim--a claim about how the world actually works. Of course we know that ice cream doesn’t control diabetes, but insulin does. Insulin controls diabetes anytime, in any place, for anyone. Objective claims are true for all people, at all times, and in all places. It doesn’t matter what one’s opinion is about an objective claim or whether you believe it or agree with it or not, it’s just true.

So why am I making this distinction between the two different kinds of truth? Because our culture today wants to put religion and morality in the subjective category. That’s why you hear people say, “That’s true for you but not for me,” when it comes to religion and morality. The mood of our culture is that morality is subjective.

If there’s no objective standard of morality, if morality is like ice cream, can we judge anyone for doing anything morally wrong? Can we? Think about it. If morality is like ice cream, we have no more right to make judgements about someone than we do to make judgements about their ice cream preference. If morality is like ice cream, we can’t judge the terrorists for decapitating Christians or any of their captors, and drowning them in cages. We can’t judge anyone for doing anything that offends us no matter how wrong it seems, because moral relativism legitimizes every personal choice. Even the ones most offensive to us.

When a young person says morality is subjective, I don’t believe them. I never believe them. Because I don’t believe people really live like that.

Part of being human is knowing the difference between right and wrong. If you try to jump off a cliff, thinking you can fly, gravity is going to have something to say about it. You can say you don’t believe in gravity but stubbornness doesn’t change truthfulness. Just as we have laws of gravity that exist in the objective world outside of us, there are laws of morality that exist objectively as a transcendent standard.

If you want to know what someone really believes about the objective status of morality, it’s not in what they say or in what they do. It’s in how they want to be treated.

Everybody wants to be treated as though morality is an objective feature of the universe. It’s inescapable. If somebody says there’s no such thing as objective morality, cut in front of them in a line, take their wallet and watch their reaction. We know people’s beliefs about morality not be their actions but by their reactions.

There was a professor teaching an ethics class at a major university in Indiana. He told his students to write on any ethical topic of their choice, requiring each student to back up their thesis with reasons and documentation. An atheist wrote on the topic of moral relativism. In his thesis, he argued that all morals are relative; there is no absolute standard of justice or rightness: it’s all a matter of opinion, he wrote. “You like chocolate, I like vanilla,” and so on. The paper provided what the professor asked; the reasons, the documentation, it was the right length, on time and stylishly presented in a nice blue folder. 

After the professor read the paper he wrote on the front cover, “F--I don’t like blue folders!” When the student got the paper back, he was enraged. He stormed into the professor’s office and yelled, “F! I don’t like blue folders! What is this? That’s not fair! That’s not right! That’s not just! You didn’t grade the paper on its merits!” The professor calmly raised his hand to quiet the student and said, “Wait a minute. Wasn’t your paper the one that said there is no such thing as fairness, rightness, and justice?” “Yes,” answered the student. “Then what’s this you say about me being fair, right and just? Didn’t your paper argue that it’s all a matter of taste? You like chocolate, I like vanilla?” The student replied, “Yes, that’s my view.” “Fine, then,” the professor responded. “I don’t like blue. You get an F!” Suddenly the light bulb went on in the student’s head. He realized he really did believe in objective morality. This simple lesson defeated his entire case for relativism.

The moral to the story is that objective morality exists.  And if you really want to get relativists to admit it, all you need to do is treat them unfairly. Hang around with them long enough, and watch them contradict themselves. The Moral Law is not always the standard by which we treat others, but it is nearly always the standard by which we expect others to treat us.

As I stated before, there are consequences to relativism. Ideas have consequences.

One consequence is that relativists can’t accuse someone of doing something wrong or complain about the problem of evil. Relativism denies such things as right or wrong. What’s right or true for you is not true for me, right? If you believe that morality is about personal definition, then you can’t make moral judgments about another’s actions no matter how offensive they are to you. You can tell them you don’t like their morality, but you can’t tell them they’re wrong. Relativism legitimizes every personal choice.

The next consequence to relativism is that a relativist can’t complain about the problem of evil. How can evil exist if morals are relative? Relativism denies that things are objectively wrong. The problem of evil would disappear in a true relativistic world.

Relativists can’t place blame or accept praise or charge others with unfairness or injustice. Relativism renders these terms as meaningless because there is no external standard of measure. So nothing could be bad and worthy of blame, nor be good and worthy of praise.

Relativists can’t promote tolerance. Relativists argue that morals are individual and that we should tolerate the views of others and not judge other’s behavior and there should be no objective rules. Well this view is self-refuting because if there should be no objective moral rules, how can there be a rule requiring tolerance?

Relativism makes religion irrelevant. Our culture treats objective and subjective truth like a two story house with the bottom floor being the objective floor including things we know for sure like science, math, law, business. On the second floor is where we live—this is the subjective floor where we cook the foods we want, we have the friends we want and we have our personal traditions and all our preferences on this floor. What our culture does is treat religion and morality as though it belongs on the second floor because it’s a personal preference and not science. This makes religion and morality fade into existence and be irrelevant to our lives. But this is wrong, because we have to treat religion as our foundation. In Matt. 7:24-27, Jesus said, “Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against the house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.” If we don’t have Christ as our foundation, our whole house is going to collapse. What is our house? Our future in eternity.

Friends, there is such a thing as truth, it’s written on our hearts and we know it. Jesus calls us to be transformed by the renewing of our minds. We need to grasp the fact that we were saved for something.

We have a responsibility to speak truth to others. Our salvation employs us in God’s redemptive plan for the world. You can’t love people by ignoring the cultural evils that victimize them. This should motivate us to have a heart for those who believe the lies of our culture that say that religion and morality are relative. So what do we do now?

1. Get informed about the lies that stand against the truth so you know how to refute them.

You can do this by reading good books on the subject of truth by Greg Koukl. One is called Tactics.

2. Be prepared to respond to bad ideas. Be bold about having conversations about truth with your own children and with others.

3. Teach your children that objective truth does exist and show them how we know.

Okay, that’s it for today. Tune in next month as we discuss (the evidence for God’s existence) And don’t forget! To get more resources from the Mama Bears, please visit us at mamabearapologetics.com

About Claudia Kalmikov

http://straighttalkwithclaudiak.com/

I’m a mom. I graduated from Cal State Fullerton with a Bachelor’s degree in Business/Marketing and had a career in sales before I married my college sweetheart, then decided to stay at home and be a full time wife and mother.  I loved being a stay-at-home mom for many reasons. Mostly because it kept me well connected with my two boys and gave me great influence over their training. I found it very rewarding and was always grateful that God gave me the chance to focus on my family and be at home with my boys.

Like some of you, I learned to surrender to Jesus after having kids. Funny how quickly you learn after having children that you can’t control anything. Going through the teenage years is enough to bring any mother to her knees!

I have two incredible sons. They are both college graduates with careers, and are out on their own.

My husband, John, and I are enjoying a new phase in our lives. Empty nest-hood. We took advantage of our new found free time by going back to school. We graduated in December 2016 from The Biola University Masters in Christian Apologetics program, and now we are anxious to put that to use. So we are jumping right in by teaching and speaking at various events. We enjoyed Biola a great deal because we learned so much about the Bible and other religions along with Apologetics. Since we hadn’t been in college for 32 years, it was a challenge. But I loved it and the Lord sustained me every step of the way. That’s another story!

It is my hope to be able to share some of my thoughts, experiences and wisdom as an apologist, and  parent with you. I pray that you will be blessed by what you read and that God may speak to you through my blog.

God Bless

Strategic & Targeted: How Apologetics Should Inform our Prayer Life || Julie Loos, Ratio Christi (Feb 27, 2018)

Hey friends, it’s Julie Loos of Mama Bear Apologetics, a partner of Ratio Christi International. Mama Bear Apologetics exists to equip moms to answer the tough questions of the faith. These questions start in the home, and moms are usually the first ones to hear them. So, let’s band together and educate ourselves. You can follow Mama Bear Apologetics on the web, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and iTunes.

Today’s topic is “How Apologetics Can Help Our Prayer Life be More Strategic and Targeted.”

Our world is full of anti-Christian worldviews infecting our kids. There is an even higher probability of infection when placed in a college environment where the exposure rate to these worldviews increases exponentially. It is a breeding ground for doubt, disillusionment, and defeat of their Christian beliefs. Lack of immunity from a young age can make them easily succumb to attacks on their faith. And it’s due in part to intellectual skepticism and doubt brought on by lack of training in what they believe, why they believe it, and how to defend it.

It’s enough to bring us moms to our knees in prayer. And thankfully, it’s beginning to bring more of us back to our Bibles and bookstores for apologetics training.

Today we’re going to talk about how apologetics study can make our prayer life more strategic and targeted. This knowledge that we gain through studying the defense of our faith can be used to pray in a way that is informed by scripture, tempered by knowledge of the culture, and applied with wisdom.

Many of us moms are zealous to pray for our kids when they are in trouble. And that’s a good thing. But listen to what Proverbs 19:2 a (NIV) tells us, “It is not good to have zeal without knowledge.” That zeal in prayer can and should be accompanied with knowledge—which is an accurately informed mind. Then remember what our Lord commands us in Matthew 22:37—we are to love him with all our mind. Other translations expand that to loving him with (MSG) all our passion, prayer, intelligence (DRA); our whole mind (Darby); our understanding (AMP) and intellect. And don’t forget that according to 1 Peter 3:15 we are to always be ready to give a defense—a reason—for our hope with gentleness and respect.

I believe the work of defending the faith cannot succeed apart from prayer, and the work of prayer can become more effective when informed by apologetics. I believe that through prayer and apologetics we can help our children stand for truth on campus and in culture and spur revival and spiritual awakening which historically has led to cultural transformation.

Apologist Francis Shaeffer said: It is important to remember, first of all, that we cannot separate true apologetics from the work of the Holy Spirit, nor from a living relationship in prayer to the Lord on the part of the Christian. We must understand that eventually the battle is not just against flesh and blood.

Be inspired and instructed by the example of Moses in Exodus 17 as explained in the book “The Front Line—A Prayer Warriors’ Guide to Spiritual Battle.” Moses prayed over the battle, while the soldiers fought in the valley. His prayer won the battle in conjunction with what was done in the natural. This mission is a tandem effort as we engage the enemy on all fronts.

The tandem effort for us moms is prayer coupled with apologetics—that’s how we can engage the enemy, the father of lies, and his deceptive philosophies, on all fronts—in the spiritual through prayer and in the natural by arming our kids with apologetics while they fight the worldview conflict on campus and in culture.

So, here’s what I would like to encourage and equip you to do as you begin or continue you study in apologetics--couple it with prayer. Here’s a four-step approach you can use.

1. Praise—this is praying to God about himself, offering worship based on his character, his attributes, his Names. It’s all about WHO he is NOT what he’s done. Think of it this way: I praise you God for you are _________. Fill it the blank about God. This is a great place to start in your prayer time because it sets our eyes on Jesus and not on our circumstances. Praise is the atmosphere within which we should pray.

2. Confession—getting right with God. Unclogging the pipeline in your communication with him. Recognizing sins of omission and commission. Naming them. Agreeing it was wrong. Asking for forgiveness and power to overcome. Confession also helps us approach God in humility.

3. Thanksgiving—now’s your chance to give God glory for what he has done or will do based on his nature. Shine the spotlight on God. It develops an attitude of gratitude. You learn how to be thankful in all things when you can’t always thank him for all things.

4. Intercession—asking on behalf of others or petition which usually refers to asking for yourself. Ask scripturally. Ask specifically. Asking in His name means with his authority and his motivation—not our own selfish motivations. Knowing what you know about him, how does that inform how you pray about a specific topic?

So how does this apply to apologetics? Let’s go back and use this prayer framework to think through a foundational apologetic topic:

Truth—Defined as the correspondence between thought and belief. Truth is telling it like it is. The world our kids are growing up in does not believe that objective truth exists. To them everything is relative and based on subjective feelings. How does what we learn about God being truth and the objective grounding for all truth help us pray?

Praise: What are some attributes of God related to truth? He is truth, immutable, all things come from him and through him, he never changes, he is the source of wisdom which was with him in the foundation of the world, his word is reliable, he is our objective standard, etc.

Confession: What sins surrounding truth need to be confessed—personally, corporately, on whose behalf do we need to confess—ourselves, the church, others? Ask God to reveal the motivation, deception, lies behind the sins that come up against truth. Confess we have given into political correctness and not stood up for the truth out of fear, ignorance, lack of training.

Thanksgiving: What can we thank him for regarding truth? How has God already been at work to correct lies; what can he do based on his nature? We can know truth, know that scripture and reality corroborate each other, all truth is God’s, truth is revealed in scripture and in nature, truth cannot be changed by belief.

Intercession:  What is the root idol, lie, or philosophy at play? What are corresponding scriptures that address truth and deception? What can we pray FOR? What can we pray AGAINST? As instructed in II Corinthians 10:3-5, what strongholds do we need to pull down, what arguments, theories, reasonings do we need to refute? Intercede for these things and pray for protection against lies and ploys of the enemy.

Join me in this prayer inspired by the apologetic that objective truth exists:

I praise you Father for you are the way, the truth, and the life. You are eternal and never-changing. Your word is completely infallible and totally reliable. Truth can be known because you are Truth and you are a knowable God. You have already defeated the father of lies. 

Forgive me when I live like the world and act as if everything is relative. Nothing could be farther from the Truth. Forgive me for buying into the postmodern thought that what’s true for me does not have to be true for others. 

That I must be “politically correct” and not offend anyone with expressing what I believe and why. I confess that mankind, in our wickedness, has repressed and hindered the truth and made it inoperative. 

Lord I thank you that you are a personal God and Christianity is the only religion with a personal God. I thank you that I can share that truth unashamedly with the world and set their deceptive thought pattern free. 

Lord Jesus, let my children know, see, read, and believe that you are the Truth. Give them the confidence and courage to stand firm in their beliefs. Show me how to ground them in the facts that back up their faith, scientifically, historically, and philosophically. Lord we pray against the doctrines, theories, systems and practices that attack Your truth. Release colleges especially from relativism, anti-supernaturalism, secularism, and pluralism. 

Change the hearts of professors who profess atheism and agnosticism and intentionally prey on the faith of our Christian students. Convict Christian students to train themselves in the knowledge of what they believe and why they believe it. Empower them to be Your ambassadors demonstrating wisdom, knowledge, and character in all their words and ways. Open the eyes of those blinded by lies; turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, so that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in Jesus. Sanctify Christian students and staff by the truth; Your word is truth. We pray that as an act of worship, our students will “present their minds in service to the Lord.” 

Lord create in them through your Holy Spirit the desire to pursue truth and proclaim it unashamedly. Amen. 

So, ladies, as you study apologetics, take note when you see something that speaks to praise, confession, thanksgiving, and intercession. Let your apologetics training make your prayer life more specific and targeted.

It is my prayer for you that you will combine zeal with knowledge, let prayer and apologetics--working in tandem in the spiritual and the natural realm--tear down strongholds that would entangle our children and be victorious in the worldview wars.

Tune in next month as we discuss in more detail that “Truth Exists.” And don’t forget—for more resources for moms see the Mama Bear website at www.mambearapologetics.com.

 To learn more about the four steps of prayer visit www.momsinprayer.org. For resources and training for your high school and college kids, visit www.ratiochristi.org.

(To email Julie about Ratio Christi: julieloos@ratiochristi.org; to email her about Moms in Prayer: college@momsinprayer.org. To read her blogs on the Ratio Christi website go to: https://ratiochristi.org/boosters/blog.)

Integrating Apologetics Into the Home || Cathryn Buse || Mama Bear Apologetics (Jan 30)

Hey friends! It’s Cathryn Buse of Mama Bear Apologetics, a partner of Ratio Christi International. Mama Bear apologetics exists for the sole purpose of equipping moms to answer the tough questions of the faith. These questions start in the home and moms are usually the first ones to hear them. So ladies let’s educate ourselves so we can be effective witnesses to the world and to our children. You can follow Mama Bear Apologetics on the web, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and iTunes.

Today’s topic will focus on how we use apologetics in the home. We are living in a time where society is increasingly skeptical of religion in general and Christianity in particular. This is why it is so important to know how to give a defense of your faith. However, it’s important not just for our own faith, but for the faith of our children. Proverbs 22:6 says to “train up a child in the ways of the Lord.” I love the use of the word “train” because it gives the appropriate image of how we are to approach raising our children in the faith. Just like in athletics or the military, training is something done consistently; it is intentional and purposeful. A soldier doesn’t stumble into being fit for battle anymore than an athlete practicing every once in a while is ready for competition. In those scenarios we understand that to be successful, training means consistency – preparing on a regular basis, and being intentional – doing all things with that end in mind. Likewise, in leading our children in their faith we must train consistently and intentionally so they are adequately prepared for the battleground of skepticism they will face.

So how do we do that?

1. Be intentional: Specifically teach our children how to defend their faith

As Christian parents, we seem to understand that raising children in the ways of the Lord will include teaching Bible stories and scripture memorization – which is most definitely part of it. But we have to recognize that the moment we start teaching them the Bible is the moment we have to be prepared to also teach them why the Bible. So apologetics, that defense of how and why we know the Bible is truth, must be a normal part of our Bible teachings with our children. This will look differently depending on the age of your children. With older children, you should set aside days specifically teach apologetics. Bring up the question of God existence and walk through several different types of arguments for how we know that God does exist. Or discuss why Christianity is truth and other world religions are not, and show them how that can logically and intelligently be answered. Go through a defense from common questions that skeptics have. There are so many resources that you can use to guide you through this, including my own book called, Teaching Others to Defend Christianity which can be found on Amazon.com.

With younger children, you can always work in the concepts of apologetics by bringing up pointed questions during your normal Bible study time. For example you could say, “We’ve said the Bible is God’s Word, how do we know that?” And get them thinking on why they are trusting the scriptures as truth – and not just because the Bible says it is true but how we can know that explicitly. You can guide the conversation with some simple evidences from archeology or the confirmation of Old Testament prophecy that prove God’s omniscience.

Maybe you’re studying how God spoke to Abraham and get them to consider how Abraham knew God was real. You might be discussing current events and bring up the existence of God even in a world of evil and suffering. You might be studying the Gospels and include extra-Biblical first century writings that corroborate the Gospel accounts. Any of those topics can and should be combined with our Biblical studies with our children. You don’t have to give them every possible objection to Christianity and dive into the depths of philosophy, you are just laying the groundwork to show them this is truth, and not just because mommy and daddy say it is.
I also think a lot of the apologetic groundwork can be laid in how we teach the Bible itself. If we always teach Bible stories as disjointed cute little accounts scattered throughout this big book, it seems no different than when we pull out the giant book of fairytales and read to them about Little Red Riding Hood. They too have fantastical accounts of a hero, sometimes animals that talk, and a moral to the story. But the Bible is SO much more than that – so we should teach it that way. Now, there’s nothing wrong with teaching individual Bible stories, but we must at some point show them the overarching big story of what God was doing throughout Scripture and throughout history. If we never make it real to them where the Bible is comprised of real events happening in a real place and time to real people, then no wonder they have such a hard time believing it to be truth when they get older!

For example, one day I was reading to my 6-year-old son about the prophecy given by God to Abraham that though he would have numerous descendants, they would be enslaved in a foreign land for 400 years. I asked him if he knew how that happened. At that point I was able to show him the lineage of Abraham down to Joseph, then he could recall that story of Joseph being sold as a slave. I could explain how Joseph ended up in Egypt, where he could recall the story of Joseph revealing the dreams to Pharaoh. Then I could walk show him how the rest of Joseph’s family came to live in Egypt and multiplied as a people by the blessing of God. I told him how that made the next Pharaoh so afraid that he made the Israelites his slaves. Now I could show him what God did by raising up Moses, where he could recall those stories of Moses leading the Israelites out of Egypt and walking on dry ground through the Red Sea.

Now all of these disjointed Bible stories could come to life for him as the recorded accounts of real people living in a real time being used by the living God to accomplish His will. They were no longer unconnected cute little stories shared at Sunday school. Now he could start to see them in a timeline in relation to one another and with God’s hand at work in all of them.

However, in order to change how we’re teaching the Bible, we must know it ourselves. We cannot teach to our children what we do not know ourselves. As parents, we must truly study the Bible ourselves to teach the Bible in context. We also must have a solid understanding of why the Bible is truth and how we can have confidence in Christianity as truth. So the first step is to be studied in the Bible so that you can be intentional in your teachings about it as the inerrant word of God.

The second step is to be studied in the foundation of apologetics – so you can intertwine that into what you are already teaching daily and you can set aside specific times in your teaching to address apologetics topics. It will take their understanding of God and the Bible to a deeper, more meaningful level.

2. Be consistent: Use it in everyday conversations. Studying apologetics doesn’t have to be just a specific time set aside each day. Just like we try to work in Biblical truths in our everyday lives, we can do the same with apologetics.

One day my 6-year-old son was saying how cool it would be if he didn’t have a nose because then he could swim underwater. As silly as that was, I used that as an opportunity to explain why the nose is important and how it, along with all our other body parts, are perfectly designed for their purpose. We are exactly how God made us to be. I wanted to tie everyday things back into confirming God’s existence, God’s order, and God’s creation. My son even stopped to ask why I always do that. I told him because it’s important to understand how God created us because one day, Satan will use ideas from the world to convince him that God didn’t create. He asked me why Satan would do that. So I said it’s because Satan wants us to doubt God’s existence so that we won’t know God – and at that point HE connected the dots and said, “Oh, because he can’t be with God and so he doesn’t want us to be either.” Now my son not only can see ways to have confidence of God’s existence, but he understands that there is a world of ideas out there that are trying to convince him that’s wrong.

So we can use apologetics in our everyday things because our everyday selves are still interacting with the works of God. We are still in His amazing creation and can see evidence of Him in everything. So you can use the things around you and the things that your child is already interested in to point back to who God is. Are they interested in bugs? Then use the amazing design of different bugs to point to an Intelligent Designer. Are they a constant rule follower? Use that sense of morality to show that we are made in God’s image. Do they enjoy history? Go through the historical evidences of the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. Take their natural interests and curiosities and show them how all aspects of our world can prove God’s truth. Our everyday selves are curious – we are naturally asking questions about the world around us, about our role in that world, and how we should interact with that world. And all of that goes perfectly with the apologetic defense of our faith... Which leads us to our last point.

3. Allow questions to be asked.

Our children are naturally curious; they will always be asking questions. It is the same little mind that asks why is the sky blue and how do trees grow that also asks us who made God and where did Satan come from. We want our children to be thinking and rational beings so it only makes sense that they will at some point ask questions of this faith that we are teaching them. That is a given. What varies is how we respond to those questions.

We can either be afraid of that and tell them to “just have faith” or “go pray on that,” or we can use apologetics to help them find answers. Let’s consider the first scenario. If your child brings you a question like, “Mommy, how do you know God exists?” and all you say is, “Well, I just believe. You need to just have faith that God is real.” What does that teach our children?

First, it says questions are not welcome here. The worst thing we can do is imply that people are not allowed to question their faith, the Bible, or God. That approach will lead them to think that they can’t question it because those questions don’t have answers. Second, it implies that this thing is believed regardless of whether there is any evidence of its truth, as though we follow Christianity simply because that is the routine we have always had. It means you are to just have faith in this religion simply because this is the routine we go about doing. And third, it makes them think that reason and critical thinking apply to everything – but NOT their faith, as if Christianity can’t withstand the scrutiny of a child’s logic. And that is not the impression we want to leave on our children. If they think the only thing to Christianity is that their parents taught it, their supposed faith will fall apart at the first skeptic they encounter.

So we must allow our children to bring us questions and most importantly, we must be prepared to give them the logical, coherent answer those questions deserve. Even though, depending on the age of your child, you may not give the same detailed answer you would give an adult, you are still teaching your children that those big questions do have answers. And you’re laying this foundation that it is ok to ask questions and those questions don’t diminish who God is.

We must create an environment where questions are welcomed. How else do we learn but by asking questions and seeking answers? It creates the perfect opportunity for deeper and more meaningful discussions and revelations. Even if you don’t know the answer already, invite the question. Say that you don’t know, but then take the time to study it and research it with your child. That will also show we are never too old to learn; we are to continue to grow in our faith and in our knowledge.

Let’s face it – we are all wanting to raise rational, discerning, thinking children. And if those are the minds we desire from our kids, then it should be no surprise when those minds eventually start asking for the reasons why they believe what they believe. We would WANT them to be discerning like that. So we can use that in training up our children in the faith – by intentionally teaching them apologetics, by consistently showing them God’s truth, and by allowing them to ask those questions. How we handle our training of their faith and its defense will frame the solidity of their faith. Because, let’s face it, we all have doubts and questions at time, and our emotions will try to lead us astray. So we want our children to be standing on solid ground with the faith of Hebrews 11:1 – being sure of what they hope for and certain of what they do not see.

Why Apologetics Needs Women || Hillary Morgan Ferrer || Kaliwanagan Kay Kristo Dec 21, 2017

Yes, Women Need Apologetics, But More Importantly, Apologetics Needs Women

Hey friends! It’s Hillary of Mama Bear Apologetics, a partner of Ratio Christi International. Mama Bear Apologetics exists for the sole purpose of equipping moms to answer the tough questions of the faith. These questions start in the home, and moms are usually the first ones to hear them. So ladies, let’s band together, and educate ourselves. You can follow Mama Bear Apologetics on the web, Facebook, twitter, youtube, and iTunes. Today’s topic is why apologetics needs women.

My nephew once asked me “Since God and Jesus are both referred to as “He,” does that mean that men are better than women?” It was such a beautifully honest question coming from his little 8-year old mind. The answer to this question is, “Absolutely not!” and I’ll explain why in point 6. However, I was glad that I was able to address this question with him at such a young age, because this belief has subtly infiltrated some of our churches for far too long.  have known both men and women whom I suspect secretly believed this, though they would never say it out loud. Their actions said it for them. Ladies, we women have a unique role in the church, and if we are not manifesting God in our unique way, then the church is incomplete, and so is the field of apologetics.

As Alisa said in the first episode, “apologetics is simply the gathering of evidence for a belief, and then communicating that belief to the world and people we love,” especially our kids. 1 Peter 3:15 says that we are to give a ready defense for anyone who asks for the hope that is within. 2 Corinthians 10:5 says that we are to demolish arguments that set themselves up against the knowledge of God. Now with words like “defense” and “demolish,” it is not surprising that the field of apologetics has been dominated by men in recent years. But that is changing. We here at Mama Bear Apologetics believe that we can fiercely defend There exists a unique creature that is as soft, cuddly, and maternal as they come, but under certain circumstances, can turn into a warrior. That creature is a Mama Bear. If you would like to see the transformation in person, go try one of her bear cub. I don’t recommend it. You will learn the meaning of the words “defend” and “demolish” is a way you would rather not! Ladies there are times to be sweet, nurturing, and docile, and times for us to stand up and protect our children. When it comes to our kid’s eternal salvation, we need to understand the reasons for our faith. Without an intelligent, reasonable faith, we are handing our children over to secular worldview that will entrap, ensnare them, and ultimately damage their faith. But remember, we never demolish people while we are demolishing an argument.

Apologetics is important for all Christians, including women, but that’s actually not what we are here to talk about today. Whenever you hear people talk about “women in apologetics,” they are usually focusing on why we need to reach women with apologetics. And it’s true, we do! The mandate to love the Lord our God with all our hearts, souls, MINDS and strengths is a universal command. So yes, I get it. Apologetics for women is vital. However, the lesser talked about issue, and that is the one we will discuss today: why apologetics needs women!

For the record, whenever we begin introducing gender into a conversation, there are people who are ready to stand up and declare their non-conformity to gender norms. When we talk about the different qualities between men and women, I am of course using generalities, generalities which were self-evident up until about 50-70 years ago. As a diclaimer, I do acknowledge that there are some men and women who defy their gender stereotype. I’m actually one of those women. Let’s acknowledge that generalities are not absolutes. We are looking at trends, and every trend has an outlier. That’s my official disclaimer before we dive into why apologetics needs women.

1)    Men pioneer, but women civilize.

It has long been recognized that women exhibit a civilizing influence on men. As mentioned above, I am speaking in generalities. And in general, men are the trail-blazers. They are the pioneers, and the ones who take pleasure in conquering uncharted territory. Apologetics is no exception. But what happens when a field remains predominantly male? You get something that looks similar to the wild west… or Lord of the Flies.

I have noticed many online conversations between skeptic and believer that have been less than civil. While truth itself must fortified without comproise, the manner in which we express these truths requires sensitivity to the individual with whom you are speaking. For some of our amazing warrior, pioneering men, this quickly becomes a bull in a china shop. Difficult truths must be applied gently, with compassion, and with mercy, all qualities for which women are more known.

2)    Women can help make apologetics more practical

A common complaint I’ve heard from churches is that apologetics isn’t practical. When they say “practical,” what they usually mean is “I don’t see how this will promote new converts or more people in the pews.” Personally, I think the practicality issue could be addressed by adding more female voices to the mix. Women may not necessarily have something new or different to say about apologetics. However, they often approach it differently.

There is truth in the phrase “Men are waffles, women are spaghetti.” Waffles are made  of a bunch of little compartments that don’t touch. With spaghetti, you cannot pull one noodle, without affecting allllllll the other noodles around it. Men have an amazing ability to compartmentalize, which is very helpful in some ways. However, when it comes to presenting apologetics in a practical manner, showing how it affect’s everyday life, I think that women’s inability to compartmentalize becomes their strength.

I have rarely heard a woman speak on apologetics topics without including how her topic has affected her personal relationship with God, and her relationships with others. Not everyone knows how to incorporate apologetics into their everyday lives. They go to conferences, and are filled with knowledge, and go home and have no idea how to implement what they have learned. I’m not saying that women alone hold the key to application. However, I will make the case that it often comes more naturally for us, and thus, we could play a vital role in making apologetics more accessible to the common lay-person, and more attractive to the average pastor.

3)    Apologetics already has a bad reputation, and a feminine face could help

I cannot count the number of times my husband and I have told someone that we did apologetics, and were met with skeptical looks, and warnings that “You can’t argue people into the kingdom of heaven.” Friends, if I could reach out and shake you right now, I would. This is important. If this many people think that apologetics is only about arguing, then we have not been doing it correctly.

I understand why men have retreated to apologetics. In many ways, the church has become very feminine, forcing men to hold hands and sing under candlelight. My push for women in apologetics is not about finding the last bastion of men, and invading it. However, there is a simple phenomena that I have observed through experience, both in the workplace, and as a teacher. When it comes to leadership, men and women can do and say the exact same thing.

The man will be seen as a strong leader, and the woman will be viewed as a [word I don’t say in polite company.] However, this exact same phenomena is true on the flip side. There are a lot of harsh truths that people will more readily hear from a woman than they will a man. Why is that? Is it because we are less intimidating? Is it because we intuitively know how to soften the blow? Is it because I’m 5’2” and it’s hard for someone to really take me seriously? Who knows. All I know is that if a man a woman both say something harsh with love, the love is often more readily perceived coming from a woman than it is the man.

Our society is a mess right now and there are a lot of harsh truths that need to be said. A feminine spin on a harsh truth can sometimes break down walls that might otherwise have been impenetrable if approached in a masculine manner.

4)    Women are more relational in their ministry

Apologist MaryJo Sharp has pointed out an interesting observation that she has made when talking with people at apologetics conferences. Men and women often have different reasons for getting into apologetics. While men are usually trying to answer their own questions, women are often trying to answer the questions of someone they love – a child, spouse, or friend. When it comes to the ministry aspect of apologetics, women seem to be more missional, but they do it in a relational way.

5)    Positive versions of femininity must be displayed if for no other reason than negative versions of femininity must be answered.

Some women having a gentle, quiet spirit means being a doormat, not speaking up, not voicing opinions. On the opposite end of the spectrum, some proponents of modern feminism think that they can elevate the status of women by attacking the value of men. Strength gained by tearing someone else down is not strength. True femininity is fierce strength wrapped in gentleness. As we women step into apologetics, we have the opportunity to model what truth wrapped in love looks like to a world that has forgotten what Biblical femininity should look like.

Finally, as to my nephew’s question, are men better than women since both God and Jesus are referred to as He? We are all image bearers of God, but we reflect different aspects His nature. In some scriptures, God manifests as a teacher, comforter, helper, and healer, all of which are traditionally feminine roles. In fact, the Hebrew word used to refer to God as helper is the same one used to refer to Eve as helper. Other times, God appears as a warrior, a defender, a provider, a judge, and a conqueror. All of these are traditionally masculine roles. If we are to ascribe one gender as having more inherent worth than the other, then we would have to say that some of God’s traits are more important than others, and that’s just not true. I rejoice because we serve a God who is both compassionate and just.

This ladies, is 5 reasons why apologetics needs women, why apologetics needs you.

To get more resources, please visit mamabearapologetics.com! Tune in next month as we hear from Cathryn Buse discussing how to incorporate apologetics into the home.

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Hillary's Bio
Hillary Morgan Ferrer is the founder of Mama Bear Apologetics, a ministry birthed from many sleepless nights. She feels a burden for providing accessible apologetics resources for busy moms on the go. Hillary has her masters degree in biology from Clemson University and is currently working on a masters in apologetics from Biola University. Her specialties are in scientific apologetics, critiques of the Darwinian mechanism, dealing with doubt, and identifying causes and solutions for youth leaving the church. She and her husband have been married for 10 years and minister together as an apologetics team in the local church. Hillary contributes to the ministry as Mama-Bear-in-Chief, coordinating the day-to-day efforts, outreach through Ratio Christi, editing blog submissions as well as writing her own, and recording the Mama Bear Apologetics Podcast with her close friend and partner, Rebekah. She can never sneak up on anybody because of her chronic hiccups, which you can hear occasionally on the podcast.

How Apologetics Saved My Faith (And How It’s Made Me a Better Mom) || Rebekah Valerius || Nov 30, 2017

Makinig sa weekly broadcast ng Kaliwanagan every Tuesday at Thursday sa Tanglaw sa Landas ng Buhay sa 702 DZAS sa oras ng 7PM

"Hey! It’s Rebekah with Mama Bear Apologetics, a partner of Ratio Christi International! Mama Bear Apologetics is a ministry geared at equipping moms of biological, adopted, foster, or spiritual children, to answer the tough questions of the faith. Christian apologetics is about defending the faith in the public square, but that defense begins in our homes as we raise our children to not only know what they believe about God, but why they believe it. Apologetics isn’t just for the elite. It’s for us. It’s for moms. You can follow us on Facebook, twitter, youtube, itunes, and subscribe to our blog and podcast via the website at www.mamabearapologetics.com.

Today we will be discussing “How apologetics saved my faith (and how it’s made me a better mom).”

A wise man once said these words: “In dealing with the arrogant asserter of doubt, it is not the right method to tell him to stop doubting. It is rather the right method to tell him to go on doubting , to doubt a little more, to doubt every day newer and wilder things in the universe, until at last, by some strange enlightenment, he may begin to doubt himself.”

Apologetics have been a part of my Christian walk for years. As someone who trained in the field of biochemistry – both as an undergraduate and then later as a research scientist – I was confronted pretty early on with the supposed conflict between faith and science. I say “supposed” because apologetics showed me that if anything, Western science owes a large part of its success to its Judeo-Christian foundations. Through apologetics, I learned that I could be a scientist and a Christian; that science could actually help me grow in my awe and wonder of God. He is the Great Designer of the world that science investigates, after all. Indeed, at times, I remember feeling closer to God in the science lab than I did at church! I’d laugh to myself saying “The heavens declare the glory of God … and so do these tiny little protein molecules I am studying!” In the end, I learned that science could never undermine my faith for it could never answer the why of existence.

Little did I know, though, the greatest challenge to my faith would not be in the hallowed halls of a scientific research institution, but at home. Indeed, the even more hallowed halls of hearth and home. After our first child was born, I quickly found myself plunged into the depths of spiritual doubt, the likes of which I had never experienced. As all mothers know, having a child creates a level of vulnerability that is very disconcerting. I suddenly realized that if anything were to ever happen to her, a part of me would die – and would forever die, it seemed. C.S. Lewis called the death of a loved one an amputation. I felt this and it even the possibility of losing my daughter  shook my faith in God to the core. Suddenly, the problem of evil loomed large in my thoughts and I waivered from its oppressive weight. The standard answer of man’s sin as its cause seemed suddenly insufficient  now that I had more skin in the game, you could say – now as a mother with a child that might experience – that would indeed experience – the evil and suffering this world had to offer. In life, suffering of some sort is inevitable, isn’t it? What had I done? How could I have brought a child into such a world? It made me wonder, “Can I trust God not to allow pain and suffering into her life? Given the sheer amount of suffering in the world, does He even care or …. Worse of all – I began to ask – Is He even there? Intellectual doubts quickly supplanted  the emotional doubts.

Around the same time, we had a friend that who had left the faith for similar reasons. He began pounding me with questions: “How can we trust the Bible?” “What about all the evil that God seems to inflict in the Old Testament?” “How could a good and loving God allow evil and suffering?” He began sending me articles and excerpts from the writings of famous atheists such as Sam Harris, Christopher Hitchens, and Richard Dawkins.

In no time, my faith was in shambles. I struggled to find answers in the church that I was attending – a church of wonderful, wonderful people – but no answers that could satisfy the my intellectual doubts. I was given a lot of support and prayer – two very important components – but answers were not there.

That’s when I turned, once again, to apologetics. Thankfully, because of the popularity of atheists like the ones listed above, apologetics conferences were becoming more prevalent . The Christian community was waking up to the need to defend the faith against these new atheists and their claims, as well as train the laity  in defending it. My husband and I began attending every apologetics conference we could. We even spent an anniversary weekend at one! I am so blessed to have him! I began devouring books by the likes of G.K. Chesterton, C.S. Lewis, William Lane Craig, Daniel Wallace, and Tim Keller. I began listening to apologetics podcasts every possible chance that I could, like when our (now two) daughters took their afternoon naps, or when I worked out, or when driving in the car. 

Many moons later, I am here to tell you that if it weren’t for apologetics (and dear brothers and sisters in Christ who prayed for me and held onto me), my faith might not have survived. I am also here to tell you that there is light at the end of the tunnel of doubt.
As far as the thorny problem of evil, pain, and suffering that sent my faith into the depths of doubt, I feel more confident in how that very problem, one that theologians and philosophers have wrestled with since the beginning of time, actually points to God rather than discredits Him or His goodness. Our Gospel is clothed in that very problem, you could say – the good news comes to us in a cloak of pain and crown of suffering – a dramatic confrontation with evil that seems to end in defeat. But only seems! There is an empty tomb at the end of that story, after all!

Our Lord endured that forsakenness that I felt in my doubt when He cried out in matthew 27:46, “ My Lord, My Lord, why have You forsaken Me?” We worship a God that is not only not removed from our suffering, but one that entered into it in order to end all suffering one day.

And now, as I minister to others who are doubting and as I defend the faith against scoffers, I can see this problem of evil at the heart of most of their objections to God. We doubt God when we suffer or see others suffering. It is only natural. The Book of Job shows us this, doesn’t it?

But if we then curse or reject God because of evil, we not only get rid of the problem of evil, but our intuitions that good and evil are real, too. 

It turns out then that the atheism that I was contemplating is too simple. It explains away pain and suffering as artifacts  of evolution rather than confronts them. Yet if one explains away the problem of evil, the problem of good follows along . It is all a useful fiction . The world does not need a belief system that depicts suffering as merely some sort of randomly generated survival mechanism for it makes a mockery not only of our pain but of our highest aspirations to knowledge, goodness, kindness, excellence, and love. The beauty of our Christian creed , with its dying and rising Saviour, is that it is large enough to contain all of these – the good as well as the evil. It reminds us that there is a world of objective “meaning, truth, beauty, and goodness” outside the groans of this world.

It is large enough to both encompass our sorrow without explaining it away, while guiding us through it with hope. One of my favorite Christian apologists, G.K. Chesterton wrote:

When once one believes in a creed, one is proud of its complexity, as scientists are proud of the complexity of science. It shows how rich it is in discoveries. If it is right at all, it is a compliment to say that it’s elaborately right. A stick might fit a hole or a stone a hollow by accident. But a key and a lock are both complex. And if a key fits a lock, you know it is the right key.

I believe Chesterton is right. Apologetics helps us discover the complexity of our creed and assures us that it is big enough to guide us through all of life – our joys as well as our sorrows. We have nothing to fear for we belong to Him who has the Key of life! And now, I get to pass this truth on to my children.  What a gift for them! This is what apologetics can give to you and your family, too!

Maranatha.

Tune in next month as Hillary discusses the topic, “Is Apologetics just for men? Why apologetics needs women!” And don’t forget! To get more resources from the Mama Bears, please visit us at mamabearapologetics.com


ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Rebekah Valerius is the mother of two precocious girls, and she spends much of her time studying and finding ways to quote G.K. Chesterton. She has a bachelors in biochemistry from the University of Texas at Arlington, and worked for several years as a research scientist in the protein crystallography lab at UT Southwestern Medical Center. She is currently studying for her masters in apologetics from Houston Baptist University. Her specialities are incorporating apologetics into culture and literature. Even though her current research interests are in the humanities, she and Hillary made an immediate bond over their shared love of science, and particularly the complex structure of proteins. Rebekah and her husband are entering their 13th year of wedded bliss. She serves primarily as co-host with Hillary on the Mama Bear Apologetics Podcast. You can see Rebekah’s writing on the Mama Bear blog as well as her personal blog www.alongthebeam.com.